How to catch and release while fishing.

Catch & Release

Our Catch and Release initiative helps restocking efforts take hold in the upper West Fork of White River and make fish populations grow again. We have installed bilingual Catch and Release signs encouraging the practice in popular fishing spots along White River and our how-to tips appear below. We also have these tips in Acrobat PDF format, ready to print on letter-size paper.

• Use barbless hooks, or pinch the barbs flat with pliers.
• Always use the heaviest line possible in order to bring the fish in as quickly as you can. The longer you fight a fish, the more lactic acid it secretes, which increases the likelihood that it will die.
• Wet your hands before handling a fish so as not to damage its protective coating.
• Try to keep the fish in the water while removing the hook.
• Carefully remove the hook, especially if it’s deep in the gullet or near the gills, pulling it back out the way it went in. Avoid pulling on the line, and consider cutting the line if the hook can’t be quickly and easily removed.
• Don’t let a fish flop around on the ground or in the bottom of a boat.
• If a fish seems exhausted or does not move following release, hold it under its belly and by its tail, and face it toward the water current until it revives.